Gentile on the mend following surgery on both knees

September 28, 2015 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Councilmember Vincent Gentile (right) chats with Community Board 10 Treasurer Greg Ahl. Eagle photo by Paula Katinas

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Councilmember Vincent Gentile will have quite a tale to tell if he is asked how he spent his summer vacation.

The Bay Ridge lawmaker underwent a double knee replacement in July and is currently undergoing physical therapy at an NYU Lutheran facility located in the basement of Shore Hill, a senior citizens apartment house on Shore Road.

“I’m getting used to my two new knees,” Gentile (D-Bay Ridge-Dyker Heights-Bensonhurst) told Community Board 10 Monday night.

Gentile, making one of his first public appearances since the surgery, said he opted to have both knees operated on at the same time. Many patients choose to take care of one knee at a time.

“I’m part of this club. Many people have had this procedure,” he said, during the meeting in the community room at Shore Hill at 9000 Shore Road.

It has been a tough road to recovery, Gentile confided. “If you have a knee problem and you can keep your knees, keep your knees!” he advised community board members.

Gentile has suffered from knee problems for several years, sources told the Brooklyn Eagle.

He underwent the double knee replacement at the Hospital for Joint Diseases in Manhattan on July 10. After a few days in the hospital, the councilman was transferred to the Rusk Rehabilitation Center to begin physical therapy. He was discharged from Rusk after a few weeks and is continuing his physical therapy as an outpatient at NYU Lutheran Family Health Center at Shore Hill.

Gentile noted that all three facilities where he has been treated are part of the NYU Langone health care system.

During his recovery process, Gentile has been performing his duties as a councilmember.

He was grateful for the “get well” wishes he received from many community board members, he said. He singled out for praise Community Board 10 District Manager Josephine Beckmann and Community Coordinator Dorothy Garuccio whom, he said, frequently called to see how he was doing.